Ask your MP to vote for Ten Minute Rule Motion on peat ban - Tuesday 16th April

The government promised to ban the sale of peat by the end of 2024 but they are dragging their feet and show no signs of introducing legislation. Theresa Villiers is introducing a Ten Minute Rule Motion on Tuesday 16th April that would force them to take action if enough MPs support it. Please contact your MP and ask them to vote for the Motion!

If you don't have your MP's contact details, you can look them up on the Write to Them website. We've written a template email below. Do add a personal comment if you can, as that will make it more powerful. Are you a gardener who uses peat-free compost? Have you ever visited a peat bog and been awed by the biodiversity? 

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Dear [MP's name],

I am writing to ask you to vote to support a Ten Minute Rule Motion secured by Theresa Villiers on Tuesday 16th April, calling for the end of peat use by the public. 

The government promised to end the sale of peat in 2024 by introducing legislation. They have told organisations like Friends of the Earth that they will introduce measures when parliamentary time permits. However, time is running out and no measures were mentioned in the King's speech. The Ten Minute Rule Motion provides a crucial opportunity to get the issue debated and voted on in Parliament. If it is voted through to a second reading, Defra would have to draw up a legal framework for a Bill and the government would have to fulfil its promise.

Over the last 10,000 years, UK peatlands have sequestered 5.5 billion tonnes of carbon - nearly 40 times the amount of carbon stored in our woodlands. Peatlands contain about half of the UK's stored carbon. Globally, peatlands store about half a trillion tonnes of carbon, trapping organic matter underwater. Digging up the peat enables oxygen to get to it, so the organic matter starts to decay, releasing carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. The environmental damage caused by extracting peat for compost is immense. It releases huge amounts of carbon into the atmosphere, contributing to climate change. Peat bogs are also excellent areas of biodiversity, so peat extraction contributes to habitat and species loss. You can read more about the importance of peatlands for biodiversity on the Wildlife Trusts' website.

Using peat in horticulture is completely unnecessary. There are more sustainable alternatives to use in bagged compost. Gardeners including Monty Don and the organisation Garden Organic advocate growing without using peat and provide information for gardeners on how to do that. We shouldn't be destroying a valuable habitat and an important carbon sink for our gardens.

The text of the Motion as it appears in the House of Commons order paper is as follows:

HORTICULTURAL PEAT (PROHIBITION OF SALE): TEN MINUTE RULE MOTION

Theresa Villiers

That leave be given to bring in a Bill to provide for the prohibition of the sale in England of horticultural peat by the end of 2024; to provide for certain exemptions from that prohibition; and for connected purposes.

Notes: The Member moving and a Member opposing this Motion may each speak for up to 10 minutes.

I hope you will be able to support this. I look forward to hearing from you.

Yours sincerely,

[Your name & address]